Queen Sarah Jane
by Jeannie Feegle
Summary: My tribute to Elisabeth Sladen. The TARDIS makes the Doctor see the last glimpse of Sarah Jane's life. Knowing that she's alive in another form, he goes to see her with Amy and Rory. Afterwards, the trio visit Vanessa, and others have decided to see her too. Sort of a sequel to Sleeping Beauty, if you've not read that, it's advisable you do, otherwise you might not understand it.


The queen of Rosadea entered a straw hut, where ten elderly people sat around a fire in wooden chairs that matched the age of its occupant. The elders were dressed in different colours, whilst Madelief wore a light brown dress with gold decorations. "I believe you are here as your daughter told you to come," one of the old women said, without looking up. "Yes, how did you know?" Madelief asked.  
"I knew when your Erdnus died that there needed to be a back up plan. I taught my granddaughter to preserve herself and to reach out to those she needed as we would need them. Vanessa has given the gifts of a second life to the friends who helped her, and they will be rewarded for their good deeds."  
"What do you mean?" Madelief frowned.  
"Madelief, you are getting old and weaker. We need someone to rule that is powerful, strong and wise," an old man replied.  
"Vanessa has found fine people to help her. We shall choose one to reign the kingdom. You will join us," the old woman added.  
"Who are you going to choose?" Enquired Madelief.  
"We have chosen the woman, Sarah Jane. She will get more out of it than the younger ones, and the Doctor is not done running. She will come here tonight, you will lead the way for her."  
In reply to the elderly woman's command, Madelief nodded.

In the TARDIS, the Doctor was talking with Amy and Rory, when suddenly, the TARDIS started up. "What are you doing?" The Doctor asked in frustration. The Ponds, confused, looked at each other. When the TARDIS stopped, the Doctor looked around. "Stay here," he said to the couple as he walked out of the TARDIS.

Sarah Jane was asleep when the TARDIS materialised in her room. The Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS, and looked at the sleeping woman in front of him. In Sarah Jane's dream, she came into the meadow she was in when the Doctor took them to Rosadea. Madelief was with her. "Come on, follow me," Madelief said as she led Sarah Jane across the meadow. The Doctor watched the process of Sarah Jane's life energy flowing out of her via the same warm glow that covered Vanessa. The Doctor came up to the still Sarah Jane, gently kissed her and then went back into his blue box.

"How about a little road trip?" The Doctor asked as he started up the TARDIS again. "Wait, what was out there?" Amy asked. "Oh, nothing important but this road trip will be!" The Time Lord replied loudly. The TARDIS came to a standstill, and the Doctor hastily walked out of it, "Come along Ponds!" They arrived in the meadow again, a familiar sight for the Doctor. He quickly walked towards the path, with Amy and Rory following. "Doctor, where is this?" Rory asked.  
"We're on a planet called Rosadea and we're going to be late if we don't hurry up!"  
"Late for what?" Amy asked curiously.  
The Doctor didn't reply. They came to the town square and swerved through the bustling crowd. In front of them was the palace. "Who are you?" One of the vibrant guards asked the trio.  
"I'm the Doctor, a friend of the queen and a friend of her former daughter."  
"The queen?" Amy and Rory said in unison.  
Madelief walked passed when she stopped at the sight of the visitors. "Who is it?" She asked the guards. "He claims he was friends with princess Vanessa and is friends with you, your Majesty."  
"Doctor? You've changed," Madelief directed it to the Doctor.  
"Yes, I sometimes change."  
"I understand why you're here, let them in," Madelief commanded the guards.  
"The wardrobes in here have suits and dresses, take your pick and put it on," the queen said to the surprised couple the Doctor had brought with him.

"OK..." Amy said as she looked around the room that she had entered with Rory. She opened a wardrobe where sparkling dresses hanging. Eagerly, she took the soft pink dress out of it and dropped it onto the chair. Rory was standing helplessly in the middle of the room whilst Amy went to the other wardrobe and got out a suit, "Here, put it on."

"Thank you for coming, Doctor, " Madelief said gently as they waited for the Doctor's companions.  
"Why take her?"  
"She would benefit more. Her friends were slipping away from her and so was her own life. Now she will be youthful and happy."  
"Thank you. Is she able to die here?"  
"Her ageing process has been reversed and slowed down. She will live for long and she will be youthful. There's less of a chance of her dying from old age here."  
"Am I able to visit her?"  
"As much as you wish."  
Amy and Rory came in, wearing their chosen outfits. "You look brilliant!" The Doctor commented as he looked at them.  
"Shall we?" Madelief asked happily. She led them into a large room which was getting filled with people. Madelief brought them to the front and told them to sit there.

A while later, the room was filled with excited people. "Doctor, what's going on?" Amy asked impatiently. "We're going to watch my friend on what may be one of the happiest days of her life," the Doctor replied softly. There was a fanfare. Everyone stood up. A youthful Sarah Jane slowly walked up the aisle towards the beautiful, gold throne waiting at the front of the room. She was dressed in a royal gown and a ceremonial robe. She looked just like she did when she first met the Doctor all those years ago. When she arrived at the small stage where the throne stood proudly, she gently sat down on it and looked at the people staring happily at her. She spotted the Doctor and warmly smiled at him, he returned a proud smile back, and the ceremony started.

After the ceremony, there was another ball. The Doctor excitedly stood with Amy and Rory on the side of the ball room. "Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome her royal highness, the new queen of Rosadea, Queen Sarah Jane!" Madelief announced. People clapped joyously as Sarah Jane entered the ball room. She immediately walked to the Doctor and his companions.  
"Doctor!" She greeted.  
"Sarah Jane!" He returned the greeting, "You look amazing. This is Amy and Rory by the way, I told you about them when we had all that business with UNIT and the Shansheeth. Amy, Rory, this is my good friend, and former companion Sarah Jane." Sarah Jane, Rory and Amy exchanged greetings.  
Sarah Jane turned to the Doctor, "Would you like to dance?"  
"Of course!" The Doctor replied.  
They went onto the dance floor and danced along to the music. Amy and Rory watched them enjoying themselves.  
"She's so pretty," Amy said to herself.  
"Do I sense a jealousy monster?" Rory joked.  
"No way!" Amy laughed, but couldn't help realising it was the truth.

It was time to go again. Sarah Jane and Madelief said goodbye to the Doctor, to Rory and Amy and then the TARDIS vanished. Amy and Rory were back in their usual attire. The Doctor was concentrating on the controls, whilst Amy and Rory were still a little confused. "Doctor, you said you were a friend of someone called Vanessa, who is she?" Rory asked.  
"That's a long story."  
"I don't care, tell us," Amy demanded.  
"I've been to that planet before."  
"Yeah, I think we got that since you knew their queen. Not the first time by the way."  
"The first time I came there, it wasn't as pretty or peaceful as it is now. They were under attack. A race called the Tenebris wanted the planet's magic to sell and wanted no one to get in the way of that. I was in the TARDIS, and chaos broke out outside. Vanessa was in danger, so I decided to help her. I brought her to Earth, hid her true self from her and everyone else but me. I told her to find Sarah Jane if she was in danger, which is what she did. Then I found them, brought them to Rosadea, found out Vanessa was royalty and..." The Doctor stopped.  
"And what?" Amy asked.  
The Doctor ignored her, and instead just fidgeted with the controls of the TARDIS. Amy interrupted him, "And what, Doctor?"  
"Come on, I'll introduce you to her," the Doctor beckoned as he clambered out, with his two companions following him.

They were at the Louvre and once in, passed hundreds of pieces of art. The Doctor walked straight past the Mona Lisa. Amy stopped and looked at it. She had never seen it before. "Come along Ponds!" He shouted when he noticed the absence of the couple. After catching up with the Time Lord, they arrived at the Sleeping Beauty exhibition. "Hey, I know about this," Amy said as she looked around, "This is the exhibition of the legend of Sleeping Beauty. Apparently the statue is able to come alive!" Rory and his wife looked around, whilst the Doctor came up to the 'asleep' Vanessa. Due to his presence, she woke up and blinked fast a few times. "Doctor?" She said as she sat up. Amy and Rory looked at what was happening. The Doctor and Vanessa didn't notice. The live statue placed her hand on the Doctor's cheek, "You've changed." "I tend to do that every now and then," the Doctor replied, smiling.  
"It's nice to see you again. How are the others?"  
"I'm sure Luke, Clyde and Rani are fine."  
"I'm guessing Sarah Jane has passed to Rosadea then."  
"Yes, it happened tonight."  
"How are you?"  
"No need to worry about me."  
Vanessa noticed the spectators of her conversation with the Doctor, "Who are they?" The Doctor reminded himself and got Amy and Rory to come towards the spirit like person the Doctor had been talking with. "Vanessa, these are my new companions Amy and Rory. Amy, Rory, this is Vanessa. Sleeping Beauty herself," the Time Lord introduced.  
"Hi," Amy said nervously.  
"Hi," Vanessa said warmly.  
"I'm sorry, I don't understand, are you alive?"  
"Yes, well, sort of."  
"Can I?" Rory asked. In reply, Vanessa slightly nodded. Rory hesitantly came closer to her, and gently placed his hand on Vanessa's which were lightly resting on her lap. What he was touching was real, and felt like a normal person's skin. He frowned in response to his senses. Then he took her hand and slowly lifted it, and it felt normal, but it did not look normal with the warm glow around Vanessa. Next he touched a curl of her hair sitting on her shoulder. It felt smooth, and normal. The process was voluntarily carried out in complete silence, yet they didn't realise. Rory was astonished, she felt real, but didn't seem real. She couldn't be real, she was a piece of art, but there she was. He let go, and just looked at Vanessa, wondering  
"Wait, how old are you?" Amy interrupted the silence.  
"I'm not sure," Vanessa replied.  
"It's complicated," the Doctor added.  
"Well, tell us."  
"I died as a teenager, but in this form, I'm two hundred and a few years."  
"But you can't be, you look so, young still," Rory denied.  
"I don't know exactly how it works, but I haven't changed since what happened," Vanessa replied. She stood up and looked around, "I've never had time to look around, last time I was kind of caught up with the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo." She analysed the reports, the pictures and the information about her, and then stopped. In front of her, was a framed painting of her. It looked like her as the piece of art, with flowers creeping into the painting via the corners, and butterflies surrounding it. The signature of the painter caught her memories, it was signed by Clyde Langer.  
"I won the art competition at school. First prize was it to be hung here," a familiar voice said. All four turned around. There was Clyde, Luke and Rani. As if by instinct, Vanessa happily ran towards them. She hugged Clyde first, then Rani, then Luke, "It's so nice to see you again!"  
"And you are?" Amy asked the three.  
"Oh yes, Amy, Rory, these are my good friends Rani, Clyde and Luke. They're friends of Sarah Jane, with the exception of Luke who is kind of her son."  
"Wait, who are you?" Luke asked the Time Lord.  
"Ah yes, I'm the Doctor, just a new face, happened a bit after I saved you from getting run over a while ago."  
Luke looked to Clyde and Rani to make sure, they nodded in assurance.  
"Who are they then?" Rani pointed to the strangers the Doctor was with.  
"Amy and Rory are my new companions, they're married."  
"Well, hi," Clyde said, "Do you like my painting?"  
"Of course I do! It's amazing!" Vanessa replied.  
"We were wondering, maybe you could help us," Clyde said with hope.  
"Help you with what exactly?" Rory asked.  
"We want to see Sarah Jane, just one last time," Rani replied.  
"I can't risk bringing you and Clyde to another planet in case the Judoon do follow up, I'm sorry."  
"But Doctor!"  
"I'm sorry, I can't be so risky any longer."  
"Will we ever see her again?" Asked a tearful Luke.  
"You will, I promise," Vanessa said as she hugged Luke in comfort.  
"Could you help us with something instead then, please?"  
"It depends, what is it?"  
"Could you do the same you've done to us and Sarah Jane, to Sarah Jane's new daughter, Sky?" Clyde asked carefully.  
"Of course! It'll be done by tonight."  
"What will be done by tonight?" Amy interrogated.  
"It's difficult to explain."  
"Oh, OK then."  
"I think it's time to go," Rani quietly commented.  
"I think it's time for all of us to go," the Doctor replied.  
Vanessa hugged the three once more and said goodbye to them. Rani, Luke and Clyde walked out. Vanessa slowly laid back down on the stone. "Goodbye Doctor," she said as she became a piece of art again. The Doctor kissed her on the forehead and said, "Goodbye Vanessa." He joined Amy and Rory, and exited.

Sky was with Luke in his flat, where they were laughing about all sorts of things. Suddenly, a white looking butterfly fluttered onto Sky's shoulder. "What is that?" Sky asked as she looked at the little thing that was flying around her.  
"It's a butterfly, Sky, but it's not an ordinary one," Luke replied.  
"What is it then?"  
"You'll find out."  
"Hello Sky, my name's Vanessa. I'm a friend of Luke's, the butterfly's your present. Goodbye, Sky," Vanessa said from her mind to Sky's.  
"Did you hear that?" Sky asked Luke.  
"No I didn't, but I know who did."  
Another butterfly happily flew into the room. It looked just as the one resting on Sky's shoulder. "Luke you have one too!" she said as the other butterfly gently went onto the flower standing in the vase on Luke's table. "Yeah, I know, mine's a bit older than yours."  
"Sarah Jane had one like that, but now it's gone. It went when she went."  
"That's because these butterflies are special, they give you an afterlife."  
"So is Sarah Jane in an afterlife now?"  
"Yeah, she is, and one day we'll join her."


End file.
